Study: Australian
gays are depressed

The largest-ever study of mental health among Australia's gays is revealing alarming levels of depression. The Australian Research Center in Sex, Health, and Society polled 5,500 gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender people and discovered that almost three quarters of them have struggled with depression, that nearly half reported at least one sign of a major depressive episode, and more than 15% of gay men had experienced suicidal thoughts. Study coauthor Anne Mitchell said she and her colleagues were shocked by the findings. She told Australian newspaper The Age, "We went back to check the data twice to make sure we didn't make a mistake--it was so striking." The study did note one positive trend: Depression rates decreased sharply as the respondents got older. "It was reassuring that older people grow out of these problems by finding safe and stable environments and good supportive groups around them," Mitchell told The Age. Earlier this week, a study in Northern Ireland revealed that 25% of young gay men there had attempted suicide. (Sirius OutQ News)